Telegraph-key.



R. L. BOULTER.

TELEGRAPH KEY.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 1, WM.

Patented Apr. 4, 1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1- I .1 MMMm mW mm Quomdoz R. L. BOULTER.

TELEGRAPH KEY.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 1, 1914.

Patented Apr. 4, 1916.

- 3 $HEETS-SHEET 2.

R. L. BOULTER.

TELEGRAPH KEY.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. I. 1914.

Patented Apr. 4

,T E, E H s m 5 E E H s 3 I l/vi hwaooeo n TE: are e TQEQ ROYAL L.BOULTER, OF LOS ANGELES; CALIFORNIA.

TELEGRAPH-KEY.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 4, 1916.

Application'filed August 1, 1914*." Serial No; 854 562.

To all whom it may concern State of California, have invented'vcertainnew and useful Improvements in: Telegraph.-

Keys, of which the followingisa specifica tion.

This invention relates to telegraph keys;

The present invention relates to that class.

of telegraph keys knownas"transmitters? or vibrators which employ a:vibratory reed in connection with a key'for the purpose of automaticallymak1ng;the dots of the Morse'code, to thereby I'BliQVGiItlllOPEf-1 atorof the repeated finger and WIISUIIIOVG ments necessary with theordinaryatelegraph.

key.

My invention relates particularly to those: transmitters employing. a.dot: key or keyv lever which is disconnectedfrom the vibratory reed andwherein the dash: formingkey lever is entirely separate from thedotforming key lever. Transmitters of the classto which my inventionbelongs have their: in-

dependent key levers arranged: for lateral.

movement by the thumb and forefinger and are particularly designed forsending "IIIGSi sages rapidly and with minimum-efiort' on the part ofthe operator and are useful to operators having writerscramp v ortelegraphers paralysis.

The present invention is; an improvement on the telegraphwkeys .ortransmitterst set forth in my Patent No. 1,074,831, dated table besidethe Morse key and thrown in circuit by a jack or plug inserted in' be-;tween the contact lip and base frame-ofthe circuit closer ofthe Morsekey. The constant use of thejack or pl-ughassresulted in spreading thecontactlip of the Morse key and in the course of time, the circuitisleft entirely open atthis point, and the contact lip of the Morse keyfinally breaks 'o-if altogether.

One object of the present invention is the.

provision of a telegraphtransmitter onvibrator which can be directlyconnected to the old style of Morse key withoutrequiring.

a connecting jack orplug and cord, thereby obviating the defectspreviously specified and-which are incident to the use of a jack orplug. In practice, I provide any suitable means for connecting thetransmitter to the frameof the Morse key, in a detachable manner byprefe'renceyand any preferred meansforefiecting contact with the circuitcloser strip of the Morse key-at any point thereof In the embodiment ofthe invention hereinafter described and which is shown in theaccompanying drawings, clampsrareaprovided to engage the trunnionscrews'of'theikey lever of the Morse key and a spring-actuated contactmemberisarranged on the transmitter so that it will bear upon thecontact lip of the circuit closer of-theMorse key. I wish it understood,however, that, believingmyself to be the first to combine a transmitteror vibrator key with a Morse'key, I do not-limit myselfto the manner inwhich the transmitter is included in circuit with the Morse key, and Ilay claim to the genericinvention involved in this combination of thevibrator and Morsekey'. Furthermore, I do not limit the invention. inthis respect to the use of a vibrator or transmitter key employing theparticular improvements which are hereinafter described, as I .am wellaware that otherrtransmitters or vibrators can be combined withMorsekeysin carrying out this branch of my invention.

By eliminatingthe plug or jack and the spreading of the contact lip oftheMorse key, the present invention cures a serious defectcmet' with inpractice'in the connection and useofa transmitter with a Morse key.

A further object of=the present invention is the-provision of animprovedtelegraph transmitter or vibrator, regardless of whetheror not suchvibrator is provided with means whereby it maybe directly applied to aMorse key ZLSPI'GVlOHSlY set forth. The: present improvements," in thatrespect, relate more particularly, first, to the vibratory reed; contactmechanism therefor; secondly, tor-the springretraction of the'reed bydirect spring tension eXerted thereon; andthird, to the provision of adot ke lever which is pivotallv mounted entirely independently of, anddisconnected from, the vibratory reed and has adjustable means wherebythe cooperation of said dot key lever, with the vibratory reed may berate from the vibrator or reed, have been themselves spring-actuated andhave exerted a constraining or restraining action on the vibratory reedso that the reed was retracted by the interposition of the dot key leverbetween the spring mechanism and the reed, or, the reed has beendirectly connected to and carried by the dot key lever. In both of thesetypes, there has been no provision for the direct retraction of thevibratory reed by spring means directly applied thereto and noadjustment of any kind has been provided to regulate the play of the dotkey lever in reference to the reed.

One of the objects of the present invention is the provision of avibratory reed which has its own spring-retracting means, and a dot keylever which is mounted independently of the reed and has adjustablemeans whereby its cooperation with the reed may be regulated to suit thecharacteristics of the operator. V

Another object is to provide a novel adjustable double contact for thevibratory reed, whereby, when a series of dots are to be made, one setof contacts completes the circuit and another set automatically opensand closes it by the vibrations of the reed,

but when only a single dot is to be made the temporary arrest of thereed by the first set of contacts will not set the reed into vibration.Consequently, in making a single dot, the reed and theautomatic dotmaking means will move as an entirety, whereas when the dot key lever isheld, after being actuated, a plurality of dots will be made until thekey lever is released.

The transmitter of the present invention embodies the principle of thetapping contact mechanism of my patent and application hereinbeforereferred to, but the improvements provide for a more delicate adjustmentand tend to minimize the in voluntary formation of what operators termsplit dots particularly in letters of the alphabet having but one dotsuch as A and N. The present invention is adapted for both fast and slowwork and for use on both long and short lines. By dispensing with thebase which has heretofore been provided for transmitters, the presentbrator is more simple, compact and lighter than transmitters heretoforeknown to the art.

I have shown and described an embodiment of the invention adapted tocarry out all of the objects hereinbefore recited, but I do not limitmyself to the specific features, constructions, and combinationsappearing therein as theyare susceptible of modifica tion in variousways, and the disclosure of the inventlon is to be considered as lllllS-trative, rather than restrictive, of the scope of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 is a side elevation showing thetransmitter applied to an ordinary Morse telegraph key; Fig. 2, asection on line 2-2, Fig. 1, showing the manner in which the clampsattach the transmitter to the trunnion screws of the Morse key; Fig. 3,a side elevation of an old. style Morse key such as appears in Fig. 1;Fig. 4:, a side elevation, taken opposite .to that of Fig. 1, showingthe transmitter disconnected from the Morse key; Fig. 5, a plan view ofthe instrument -when separate from the l Iorse key; Fig. 6,

a front elevation showing the dot and dash key levers broken ofi; Fig. 7a detail perspective of the vibratory reed and contact mechanism, thebob being omitted; Fig. 8, a detail perspective looking toward the otherside of the vibratory reed; Fig. 9, a detail perspective of the rear endof the dot key lever, the adjusting. screw being omitted;

Fig. 10, a similar view of the dash key lever, parts of Figs. 8, 9 and10 being in separated,

but associated relation to illustrate the positions of these parts whenin operative relation; Fig. 11, a horizontal detail view partly brokenaway, illustrating the relative ositions of the vibratory reed, dotlever, ash key lever and the adjustable connection for the reed contactbar; Fig. 12, a detail cross section showing the insulated adjustablejoint for the vibrator contact; Fig. 13, a detail perspective, brokenaway, showing the spring-actuated contact of the transmitter and themanner in which it bears upon. the contact lip ofthe Morse key when thetransmitter is combined therewith; and Fig. let, a bottom detail'planview showing certain electrical connections.

In Figs. 1, 2 and 3, there is illustrated a well known type of Morse keywhich is in common use in telegraph ofiices. Heretofore vibrator ortransmitter keys have been provided with their own base and providedwith a jack or plug included in circuit with the dot and dashmechanismthereof. This plug or jack has been inserted underneath thecontact lip 1 (Figs. 1, 3 and 13) of the old style key, thus obviatingthe necessity of any operation of the key lever 2 of the old instrument.The circuit closer of the old instrument is shown at 3. The action ofthe plug or jack is a wedging action and in a relatively short time thecontact lip or member 1 is bent up, by repeated insertions of the jackor plug beneath said lip so that eventually the jack or plug of thetransmitter does not makev contact with said lip and, consequently, thecircuit is left open, or, the lip is pried up so far that when thecircuit closer 3 is closed, after withdrawing the jack or plug, thecircuit including the Morse key is left open without the operator 1knowing it. The most. serious objection to the use of these plugs orjacks for connecting semi-automatic transmitters is that the repeatedwedging of the plug eventually breaks the lip 1 completely off, whichnecessitates loss of time in removing the Morse key and. substitutinganother or substituting.

another contact strip. With my transmitter or vibrator, there is usedno'jack or plug. of any character, the instrument being directlyconnected to the Morse key, as "shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Any suitablemeans may be provided to carry out this end, the invention consistingbroadly in the direct attachment of the transmitter to the Morse key andin the use of a connection which will permit ready detachment of thetransmitter from said key. My transmitter is provided with a metallicbase 4 which has legs 5 preferably provided with feet 6 of insulatingmaterial, said feet being adapted to rest. directly on the table or deskwhich is indi cated by the line 7. To the plate 4 is secured by'screwsor in any other manner, a bar 8 which carries clamp blocks 9 havingopenings or notches 10 to receive the trunnion screws 11 of the Morseinstrument, and there are provided clamping screws 12 for securing theclamps to the trunnion screws, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2 Connected to,but insulated from the plate 4, at 13, is a contact 14 (Fig. 13)consisting of a tube containing a spring 15 which bears upon abifurcated contact member 16 which straddles a pin 17 carried by thetube 14. The play of the plug 16 is sufficient to cause it to adaptitself to the contact lip 1 of any of the usual types of Morseinstruments, one of which is shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3. Then thetransmitter is superposed on the Morse key, as shown in Fig. 1, and theclamps are secured to the trunnion screws 11, the contact plug 16 thenbears upon the lip 1. The part of the circuit including the frame of theMorse instrument, then includes the frame 4 of the transmitter and theremaining part of the circuit is completed through the insulated tube 14and plug 16 and the contact lip 1. This leaves the contact hp 1 free tobe closed by the circuit closer 3 in the usual manner, and I am,therefore, on abled to dispense with a separate circuit closer on thetransmitter. As shown in Fig. 14, the tube 14 and plug 16 are connectedby a metal strip 18 to the screw 19 that secures the dash contact pillar20 to the plate 4. Insulation 21 prevents electrical contact between thepillar 20 and the plate 4.

Referring to Fig. 5, there is carried by the pillar 20 the adjustabledash contact 22 with i which the dash lever 23 cooperates through itscontact 24. The dash lever is provided with its own finger or key 25 andis pivoted by its trunnion 26 to the bar 27 at its upper end, and itslower end receives the conical tip of an adjustable screw 28.Anadjustable stop 29 (Figs. 6' and 10) is carried by the dash key lever23 and is adapted to engage the cross bar 27 to limit the retraction ofthe dash key lever by the spring 30 (Figs. 5 and 6), said spring beingadapted for adjustment by a screw 31, which passes through a plate 39.(Figs. 1, 5 and 6) secured to the bar 27. The dash lever is adapted tobe operated independently of the dot lever, for the formation of thedashes and it is-mounted independently of the dot lever, as clearlyshown in Figs. 5, 9 and 10.

Referring to Fig. 14, a metal strip 33 extends from the screw 19 to ascrew 34 which secures a pillar 35 of the main dot contact to the plate4. The pillar 35 is insulated from the plate 4, as shown at 36, Fig. 4,and it carries an adjustable main contact 37, Fig. It is through thecontact 37 that the circuit is initially closed when the dot key leveris operated either to form a single dot or toform a plurality of dots.

Referring now to Figs. 5, 6 and 11, the vibratory reed 38 which is ofresilient material throughout, is connected to plates 39, preferably byriveting, and these plates have a trunnion 40 whose upper tip is journaled in a screw 41 (Figs. 1 and 6), while its lower end or point isreceivedin a concavity in the crossbar 27, whereby the vibratory reed ispivotally mounted. Other means for pivotally mounting the said reed maybe employed. The vibratory reed is directly and positivelyspring-retracted by a compression coil spring 42 (Figs. 5, 6 and 11)which engages the front end thereof, the latter being provided with anaperture 43 (Figs. 7 and 8) to receive one tip of the said spring, whilethe other tip thereof is entered in the hollow end of an adjusting screw44 which is threaded through the bracket 32. By this means, theretracting tension of the spring on the reed may be changed at will. Itwill be seen, therefore, that the vibratory reed is normally retractedto the position shown in Fig. 5solely by the action of said spring, asin my instrument the dot key lever is mounted entirely separate from thereed and exerts no retracting function on said reed, nor is it directlyconnected to the reed.

Referring again to Figs. 7 and 8, secured between the plates 39 is atapping spring 45 which is resilient throughout its length and projectsfreely from between said plates and lies in an open portion 46 of thereed. The free end of this tapping spring is provided with a stop orarrester 47 which overlaps the reed and is adapted to bear against it,due to the resiliency of the said spring 45. Spring 45 is provided witha contact 48 (Figs. 5 and 7) adapted to cooperate with the tip 49 of anadjustable contact screw 50 for the purpose of automatically forming aplurality of dots. The screw 50 is carried by a rod or 49 can beeffected. The block 52 carries a contact 53 adapted to engage thecontact 37 when the vibrator is swung against the retracting tendency ofthe spring 42.

Referring to Figs. 11 and 12, the plates 39 are provided with aperturesin which is a bushing 54 of insulating material, through which passesthe screw-threaded stem 55 which has ahead 56 provided with a hole ofapproximately the same size as the hole in block 52 which receives rodor tube 51, and the rod or tube 51 passes through the said hole. Ashoulder 57 is provided to bear against the inner side of the block 52.The lateral pull exerted firmly clamps the rod or tube 51 to the block52 when the parts are tight. Insulating washers 58 and a nut 59 on thescrew 55 complete the means for clamping the parts together so that theblock 52 and the rod or tube 51 will be firmly secured in relation tothe reed 38. It will be observed, however, that the block 52 ispivotally mounted on the part 56, and consequently, the contacts 49 and53 can be raised or lowered in relation to contacts 48 and 37,respectively, whereby up and down adjustment, in addition tolongitudinal adjustment heretofore referredto, is obtainable. A veryfine adjustment'of the contact mechanism is, therefore, insured.

When the vibratory reed 38 is moved in opposition to the tendency of thecompression spring 42, the contacts 37 and 53 are brought together. Ifbut a single dot is to be made, the reed will be at once released by theoperator, but if a plurality of dots are desired, the operator retainsthe engagement of the contacts 53 and 37 and the arrest of the reed 38thereby sets it into vibration,

451iwhereupon it repeatedly separates from and strikes the stop orarrester 47 by alternate movements and thus exerts a tapping action onsaid arrester 47, which is in turn communicated to the flexible member45, resulting in the contact 48 alternatelv repeatedly striking anddisengaging from the contact 49, whereby a plurality of dots are formed.During this vibration of the reed 38, the contacts 53 and 37 remainengaged. If the reed $38 is swung quickly and then released, only onecontact will be made, that at 37, 53, and the contacts 48 and 49 willnot separate. A single dot will thus be formed. The reed is providedwith an elongated slot 60 to permit adjustment of the bob or weight 61.By shifting the bob or weight 61 to different positions, the rapidity ofvibration of the reed may be increased or diminished. A loosely mountedstop 62 carried by pillars 63 arising from base 4, constitutes anarrest- 1 the reed.

ing means for preventing vibration of the reed when it is released andretracted by the compression spring 42.

Heretofore vibratory reeds of transmitters have either been directlycarried by the dot lever and bodily movable therewith, or, such reedshave been constrained or restrained by the dot lever and spring meansemployed to hold the dot lever in contact with the reed or to transmitmotion from the dot lever to I have improved on these prior construc- 9,10 and 11. The dot lever 64 has a trunnion 65 which at its upper pointedend 66 is pivotally received in an opening in the lower face of bar 27,its lower end having a concavity which receives the tip of an adjustablescrew 67 carried by plate 4, as shown in Fig. 6. Secured to and risingfrom the dot lever 64 at the rear end thereof is a stud 68, and locatedforwardly of the trunnion 65 is another stud 69. The stud 68 is adaptedto engage one of the plates39 when the fingenpiece 70 of the dot lever64 is moved toward the finger-piece 25 of the dash lever. the movementbeing of an amplitude determined by the adjustment ofa setscrew 71(Figs. 5 and 11), whose stem is adjustably threaded through the opening72 in the stud 69, Fig. 9. The tip ofythe screw 71 is adapted to engagethe plate 39. The dot lever 6-1 idly mounted. The movement of thelinger-piece 70 away from the fingerpiece 25 is determined by thedistancethe tip of the screw 71 is from the plate 39. The effectiveaction of the dot lever in moving the reed from the position shown inFig. 5 and against the retracting action of the spring 42 is determinedby the distance the stud 68 moves before it engages the plate 39.Adjustment is, therefore, provided throughthe screw 71, as clearly shownin Fig. 11, for any desired amplitude of movement of the dot lever 64before the stud 68 effectively engages the reed to move it, andconsequently, adjustments may be had to accommodate the peculiarities offinger and wrist movements of any operator who may use the instrument.So far as I am aware.

I am the first to provide a dot key lever for the formation of one ormore dots. A quick movement and release of the fingerpiece 70 merelybrings thecontacts 37 and 53 together for the formation of a single dot.There is then no break and make at the contacts 48, 49. If, however, thepressure is retained on the finger-piece 70, the contacts 57 and 53remain in engagement and the reed 38 vibrates, causing separation andengagement of the contacts 48, 49, as previously explained, thusautomatically forming a plurality of dots which operation continues,within certain limits, as long as the pressure is retained on thefinger-piece 7 0, but immediately the pressure is released, thecompression spring 42 moves the reed back to normal position and the bob61 then strikes the stop 62, which stops the reed from vibrating. Thecircuit is then broken both at 37, 53 and 48, 49.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination with a main telegraph key having a freely projectingcontact lip and a circuit closer adapted to engage said lip, of a secondtelegraph key having means to engage the frame of the key first-namedand also provided with a spring-actuated electrical contact adapted tofrictionally en'- gage the contact lip aforesaid.

2. The combination with a telegraph key of the Morse type, of atelegraph key of the transmitter or vibrator type, screw clamps carriedby the last-named key which are adapted to engage the trunnion or pivotnuts or heads of the Morse key, and a contact carried by the transmitterkey adapted to engage the circuit closing contact of the Morse key, thetransmitter key being adapted to be positioned in superposed relation tothe Morse key.

3. In a telegraph key, the combination with a spring-retracted vibratoryreed, and contact means cooperatively related thereto for the formationof dots, of an independently and idly mounted pivoted dot key le-. verhaving means on one side of its pivotal point adapted to engage thereed, and carrying adjustable means on the opposite side of its pivotalpoint for regulating the idle play of the key lever in relation to thevibratory reed.

4- In a telegraph key, the combination with a spring-retracted vibratoryreed, and contact means cooperatively related thereto for the formationof dots, of an independently and idly mounted dot key lever adapted toengage the reed, and an adjustable screw carried by the key lever andadapted to cooperate with the reed for the purpose of regulating theidle play of the lever in relation to the reed.

5. In a telegraph key, the combination with a pivotally mountedvibratory reed, of

a spring directly acting thereon adapted to normally retract the reed,contact means with which the reed is adapted to cooperate when moved inopposition to the retracting tendency of the spring aforesaid, and a keylever pivoted independently of the reed and haying means on oppositesides of its pivotal point adapted to engage the reed.

6. In a telegraph key, the combination with a pivotally mountedvibratory reed,

by the reed when said reed is moved in opposition to the retractingtendency of the spring, a key lever pivoted independently of the reedand movable independently thereof, said lever having studs arranged onopposite sides of the pivotal point of the reed and adapted to cooperatetherewith and an adjustable screw carried by one of said studs andcontrolling the engagement of the studs with the reed.

8. In a telegraph key, the combination with a vibrator, of a leaf orribbon spring connected to and movable with the vibrator,

whereby said vibrator and leaf or ribbon spring are adapted to movetogether as an entirety, said vibrator, and leaf or ribbon spring beingcooperatively related so that the vibrator will deliver taps upon theleaf or ribbon spring, contacts respectively carried by the ribbonspring and vibrator adapted to be opened and closed b hg action of saidleaf or ribbon spring, and a key lever adapted for swinging thevibrator.

9. In a telegraph key, the combination with a vibrator, of aleaf orribbon spring connected to and movable with the vibrator, whereby saidvibrator and leaf or ribbon spring are adapted to move together as anentirety, said vibrator and leaf or ribbon spring being cooperativelyrelated so that the vibrator will deliver taps upon the leaf or ribbonspring, contacts adapted to be opened and closed by said leaf or ribbonspring, spring means directly cooperating with the vibrator and adaptedto retract it, and an independently mounted key lever adapted tocooperate with the vibrator to move it in opposition to the retractingtendency of said spring.

10. a telegraph key, the combination with a vibratory pivotally mountedreed, of a leaf or ribbon spring carried thereby and bodily movabletherewith which is arranged and adapted in relation to the reed so thatthe said reed will deliver taps thereon, a contact carried by andinsulated from said vibratory reed, said contact being adapted to beengaged by the leaf or ribbon spring aforesaid and to be opened andclosed by the tapping action of the vibrator on said leaf or ribbonspring, a main contact which is closed when the vibrator is moved fromnormal position, and means for operating said vibrator.

11. In a telegraph key, the combination with a vibratory pivotallymounted reed, of a leaf or ribbon spring carried thereby and bodilymovable therewith which is arranged and adapted in relation to the reedso that the said reed will deliver taps thereon, a contact carried byand insulated from said vibratory reed, said contact being adapted to beengaged by the leaf or ribbon spring aforesaid and to be opened andclosed by the tapping action of the vibrator on said leaf or ribbonspring, a main contact which is closed when the vibrator is moved fromnormal position, and an in dependently mounted key lever having anadapted to be closed when the vibrator is moved to thereby complete thecircuit and also act as a stop to arrest the vibrator so that saidvibrator will be set in vibration.

13. In a telegraph key, the combination with a vibrator, of a contactcarried thereby,

another contact adjustably mounted on the vibrator and adapted tocooperate with'the contact aforesaid, the last-named contact beinginsulated from the vibrator, and a combined stop and contact extraneousto the vibrator and adapted to complete the.

circuit through the insulated contact aforesaid.

let. In a telegraph key, the combination with a vibrator, and a contactcarried thereby, of alcontact adapted to cooperate withis vibrating itwill deliver taps on said contact, a rod or stem slidably and rockablycarried by and insulated from the vibrator, a contact carried bysaidstem which is adapted to cooperate with the contact aforesaid, and acombined stop and contact extraneous to the vibrator which is adapted tocomplete the circuit through said stem and contacts first-named.

In testimony whereof,'I hereunto affix my signature in presence of twowitnesses.

ROYAL L. BOULTER.

Witnesses F. A. RUENITZ, F; CRoss.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G.

